Looking forward to complete next month on a ground floor flat in Alderley Edge. Conveyancing lawyers have said that they are sending me a report on Monday. Are there areas in the report that I should be focusing on?

The report on title for your leasehold conveyancing in Alderley Edge should include some of the following:

• How long the lease is You should be advised as what happens when the lease ends, and aware of the importance of not letting the lease term falling below eighty years
• Does the lease prohibit wood flooring?
• You should have a good understanding of the insurance provisions
• Repair and maintenance of the flat
• Changes to the flat (alterations and additions)
• I don't know whether the lease allows me to alter or improve anything in the flat - you should know whether it applies to all alterations or just structural alteration, and whether consent is required
• Whether the landlord has obligations to ensure rights of quiet enjoyment over your premises and do you know what it means in practice?

My wife and I purchased a leasehold flat in Alderley Edge. Conveyancing and Nationwide Building Society mortgage are in place. A letter has just been received from someone saying they have taken over the reversionary interest in the property. Attached was a ground rent demand for rent dating back to 1994. The conveyancing practitioner in Alderley Edge who acted for me is not around.Any advice?

First make enquiries of HMLR to be sure that the individual purporting to own the freehold is in fact the new freeholder. It is not necessary to instruct a Alderley Edge conveyancing solicitor to do this as you can do this on the Land Registry website for less than a fiver. You should note that regardless, even if this is the rightful landlord, under the Limitation Act 1980 the limitation period for recovery of ground rent is six years.

Last month I purchased a leasehold flat in Alderley Edge. Am I liable to pay service charges for periods before completion of my purchase?

Where the service charge has already been demanded from the previous lessee and they have not paid you would not usually be personally liable for the arrears. However, your landlord may still be able to take action to forfeit the lease. It is an essential part of leasehold conveyancing for your conveyancer to be sure to have an up to date clear service charge receipt before completion of your purchase. If you have a mortgage this is likely to be a requirement of your lender.

If you purchase part way through an accounting year you may be liable for charges not yet demanded even if they relate to a period prior to your purchase. In such circumstances your conveyancer would normally arrange for the seller to set aside some money to cover their part of the period (usually called a service charge retention).

Do you have any top tips for leasehold conveyancing in Alderley Edge from the point of view of saving time on the sale process?

• Much of the frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Alderley Edge can be reduced if you instruct lawyers the minute your agents start marketing the property and request that they start to collate the leasehold information needed by the buyers conveyancers.
• Many freeholders or managing agents in Alderley Edge levy fees for providing management packs for a leasehold homes. You or your lawyers should find out the fee that they propose to charge. The management pack can be applied for as soon as you have a buyer, thus accelerating the process. The average time it takes to obtain the necessary information is three weeks. It is the most common reason for frustration in leasehold conveyancing in Alderley Edge.
• Some Alderley Edge leases require Licence to Assign from the landlord. If this is the case, you should place the estate agents on notice to make sure that the purchasers obtain bank and professional references. The bank reference should make it clear that the buyer is financially capable of paying the yearly service charge and the actual amount of the service charge should be quoted in the bank’s letter. You will therefore need to provide your estate agents with the actual amount of the service charge so that they can pass this information on to the purchasers or their solicitors.
• If there is a history of conflict with your freeholder or managing agents it is very important that these are settled prior to the flat being put on the market. The purchasers and their solicitors will be warry about purchasing a property where there is an ongoing dispute. You may have to bite the bullet and discharge any arrears of service charge or settle the dispute prior to the buyers completing the purchase. It is therefore preferable to have any dispute settled prior to the contract papers being issued to the buyers’ solicitors. You will still have to reveal details of the dispute to the buyers, but it is clearly preferable to reveal the dispute as historic as opposed to unsettled.
• If you hold a share in a the Management Company, you should ensure that you have the original share certificate. Arranging a duplicate share certificate can be a lengthy formality and delays many a Alderley Edge home move. If a new share is necessary, you should approach the company director and secretary or managing agents (where relevant) for this at the earliest opportunity.

Completion in due on our sale of a £ 375000 apartment in Alderley Edge in just under a week. The managing agents has quoted £<Macro 'feeRangeWithVAT'> for Certificate of Compliance, insurance certificate and 3 years service charge statements. Is it legal for a freeholder to charge such fees for a flat conveyance in Alderley Edge?

Alderley Edge conveyancing on leasehold apartments usually requires the buyer’s conveyancer sending enquiries for the landlord to address. Although the landlord is not legally bound to answer these enquiries most will be content to assist. They are entitled charge a reasonable charge for answering questions or supplying documentation. There is no upper cap for such fees. The average fee for the information that you are referring to is over three hundred pounds, in some cases it is above £800. The management information fee levied by the landlord must be sent together with a summary of rights and obligations in relation to administration charges, without which the invoice is technically not due. Reality however dictates that one has little option but to pay whatever is demanded should you wish to complete the sale of your home.

I purchased a garden flat in Alderley Edge, conveyancing formalities finalised in 2011. Can you let me have an estimated range of the fair premium for a lease extension? Corresponding properties in Alderley Edge with over 90 years remaining are worth £213,000. The ground rent is £50 levied per year. The lease expires on 21st October 2096

With only 70 years left to run we estimate the price of your lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 as well as plus your own and the landlord's "reasonable" professional fees.

The figure above a general guide to costs for extending a lease, but we cannot give you the actual costs without more comprehensive due diligence. You should not use the figures in a Notice of Claim or as an informal offer. There are no doubt other issues that need to be considered and you obviously should be as accurate as possible in your negotiations. Neither should you take any other action based on this information without first getting professional advice.